WND EXCLUSIVE

OUT OF THE PEWS AND INTO THE STREETS

Days before election, outraged Americans to storm White House

Chelsea Schilling is a commentary editor and staff writer for WND, an editor of Jerome Corsi’s Red Alert, and a proud homeschooling mother. Schilling joined the Army at age 17, receiving the exceptional designation of expert marksman three times. In addition to WND, Schilling has worked as a news producer at USA Radio Network and as a news reporter for the Sacramento Union.

Just 17 days before Election Day, American voters of all faiths will take to the streets in the name of religious freedom and in protest of the Obamacare contraception mandate – with one of the major protests unfolding on President Obama’s doorstep.

On Oct. 20 at 12 noon, more than 100 “Stand Up for Religious Freedom” rallies sponsored by the Stand Up for Religious Freedom Coalition will take place in cities coast to coast, including Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Honolulu, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Minneapolis and others.

The White House protest, which is sponsored by the Christian Defense Coalition and Survivors of the Abortion Holocaust, is scheduled for Sept. 30 from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

“I think the Obama administration really awakened a sleeping giant with this thing,” said Eric Scheidler, executive director of the Pro-Life Action League and co-director of the Stand Up for Religious Freedom rallies.

According to the group, tens of thousands of citizens are expected to rally in peaceful, non-partisan demonstrations at local federal buildings, court houses, congressional offices, city parks and churches. The organization notes that at least 300 “Stand Up for Religious Freedom” rallies took place in March and June, drawing more than 125,000 participants.

“People have been feeling like their faith is being treated shoddily by the government, by much of the culture and by the mainstream media,” Scheidler told WND. “They’ve been feeling it for years, in terms of being marginalized and being made to feel their faith is unwelcome in the public square.”

Under Obamacare’s contraception mandate, all employers – even religious institutions – must offer contraceptives, sterilizations and abortion-inducing drugs to employees.

According to the Congressional Research Service, companies that do not comply may be hit with a federal tax of $100 per day for each employee.

Just three months ago, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld Obama’s massive health reform law in a 5-4 decision.

“Many people were counting on the Supreme Court to solve this problem by striking down the law,” Scheidler explained. “But that’s not what happened, so it’s really up to us now to get out on Election Day and make a difference. That’s why we decided to hold this rally 17 days before the election – to expose the injustice of the HHS mandate right in the heart of the election season and to rally the troops.”

“Also, we want to put all those running for office on notice that this issue matters to us and it’s not going to go away.”

Meanwhile, American courtrooms are bursting with lawsuits brought by businesses and religious groups. As WND reported, the American Center for Law and Justice is representing 79 members of Congress with friend-of-the-court briefs filed in 12 separate lawsuits brought by more than 40 Catholic organizations suing over the requirement.

But Scheidler warned citizens that the battle must be fought outside the courts as well.

“The lawsuits are proceeding and many institutions are fighting the HHS mandate, but it’s going to take years for that process to complete,” he said. “And you never know which way a court ruling is going to go.”

He added, “But if we can change the leadership or we can convince our elected officials to take action, that will be a much faster way to solve this problem and prevent the mayhem of religious institutions and business owners having to face massive penalties or be shut down over this issue of conscience. It’s really our most direct route. It’s time for people of faith to wake up.”

Eric Scheidler, executive director of the Pro-Life Action League and co-director of the Stand Up for Religious Freedom rallies

Scheidler said people from all walks of life, from all faiths, from all races – men and women – have been turning out in droves to protest the mandate.

“The mainstream media and the Obama administration and Planned Parenthood were trying to make this thing out to be a battle between crusty, old Catholic bishops and a bunch of bold, young women trying to live out their lives in freedom,” he said. “One of the big successes of the June and March rallies was that they really put a face on the movement against the HHS mandate that is pretty compelling. I think we’ve really shown the power of grassroots activism to reset the agenda.”

As for Americans who would prefer to stay home on Oct. 20, Scheidler urges them to think twice about that decision.

He said, “Whether we achieve a tremendous victory or this is the beginning of the end of freedom in America, you don’t want to look back in 10 or 20 years and try to explain to your grandchildren or your great-grandchildren why you were sitting down when other people were standing up for religious freedom.”

The following is a list of scheduled rallies at the time of this report. A complete list is available at StandUpRally.com. All rallies begin at noon local time on Oct. 20 unless otherwise noted.

StandUpRally.com does not require RSVP and will provide signs. To sign up to be a rally captain in another city, individuals may fill out this form.